The present invention concerns shelf supports of the type used to support shelves between oppositely facing upright members such as cabinet side walls. The invention particularly relates to a shelf support that includes a locking mechanism to retain the shelf in place during movement of the cabinet or bookcase in which it is contained, or in case of jostling of the shelf during cleaning or manipulation of articles thereon.
Brackets for supporting shelves inside cabinets, bookcases, and the like, while at the same time permitting the shelves to be readily adjustable, have been known for some time. However, the shipping of cabinets with internal shelves presents a problem. With shelf supports that do not also positively retain or lock the shelf in place, the jostling or shock that the article of furniture receives during shipping and handling can cause the shelf to bounce around within the cabinet and damage the cabinet. Thus, shelf supports having a retaining mechanism to maintain the shelf in position during movement have been proposed. Examples are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,117 to Taft; U.S. Pat. No. 4,432,523 to Follows; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,053,132 to Del Pozzo.
Even when cabinets are not shipped with shelves installed in place, it is extremely desirable to lock the shelves in place within the cabinets to prevent jostling of the shelves and the shelves from consequently falling down between the supports, and damaging the contents of any shelf positioned beneath that shelf. Thus, it is much more desirable to provide a cabinet or bookcase with an adjustable shelf that has the rigid and solid feel of a permanently installed shelf.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,471,112 to MacDonald et al. discloses a shelf support in which a resilient finger locks the shelf in place. The MacDonald device serves to reduce or prevent vertical movement of the shelf once it is installed in place. However, a problem with the MacDonald device is that no means is provided for resiliently retaining the shelf against lateral movement if the shelf is not precisely dimensioned to fit within the intended space. As will be appreciated, it is difficult to cut wood shelves to precise width dimensions so that all lateral movement of the shelf is avoided. Hence, the width of the shelves installed in a typical bookcase can vary around a median width, with some shelves being relatively long and other shelves being relatively short. Since shelves that are too wide must necessarily be trimmed to a shorter width or they will not fit into the provided space at all, the result can be shelves that rattle significantly within the cabinet of some means for cushioning lateral movement is not provided.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,813 to Loui et al. discloses a shelf support in which a shelf is passed over resilient members that carry a locking shoulder. The locking shoulder serves to reduce or prevent vertical movement of the shelf once it is installed in place, and the resilient members serve to tension the shelf against lateral movement. Thus, some variability of width of the shelf installed in place can be accommodated. However, this goal is frustrated in part by the need to force the shelf over the shoulder, which is formed from a solid piece that is angular in cross-section. As will be immediately apparent from FIGS. 3 and 4 of Loui, a shallower shoulder is required when a relatively long shelf is inserted, or the shelf will not be able to pass over the shoulder. However, a shallow shoulder will not effectively retain a shelf in place against jostling or the like, particularly on those occasions when a relatively short shelf is inserted in place.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for locking shelf supports that are able to securely lock shelve in place, which can accommodate the usual variability of shelf length, and do not rely upon precise lengthwise cutting of the shelves to be installed.
In accordance with the present invention, a shelf support for locking a shelf edge portion in place when a shelf is positioned between opposing wall members in a cabinet or the like is disclosed herein. The shelf support comprises a body member having a lower body portion, a substantially flat middle body portion, and a substantially flat upper body portion. The lower body portion has a front face and a back face, with the back face being substantially planar so as to lie against the opposing upright wall member in which it is installed. A shelf flange is connected to the lower body portion front face, and a stem is connected to the lower body portion back face. The middle body portion is connected to the lower body portion at a first resilient junction, with the middle body portion extending at an obtuse angle away from the lower body portion.
The upper body portion is connected to the middle body portion at a second resilient junction, with the upper body portion having an inner opening formed therein, with the inner opening extending downward towards the middle body portion. The upper body portion also has a top edge portion formed thereon, with a substantially flat finger connected to the top edge portion at a third resilient junction, the finger extending downward toward the middle body portion. The finger is in a position projecting away from the upper body portion. The finger has a lower shelf retaining edge and is dimensioned to be collapsibly received within the inner opening.
The middle body portion and the upper body portion together form an obtuse angle at the second resilient junction and tend to flatten and increase that angle as a shelf edge portion is moved over the upper body portion towards the flange. In contrast, the finger and the upper body portion together forming an acute angle at the third resilient junction and tend to flatten and decrease that angle as a shelf edge portion is moved over the upper body portion towards the flange. As a result, when a shelf edge portion is moved over the upper body portion and contacts the flange, the finger returns to the aforesaid position projecting away from said upper body portion, the retaining edge engages the shelf end portion, and the shelf is locked in place between the retaining edge and the flange (with the retaining edge abutting the top of the shelf and the flange abutting the bottom of the shelf.
The foregoing and other objects and aspects of the invention are described in the drawings herein and the specification set forth below.